Summary: Arakure (Wild Ones), Vol 5, Chp 23

This chapter starts with Igarashi having a dream about his childhood. He is a very cute little boy with a lonely but bright smile. He is assuring himself repeatedly that he is okay and that the situation is okay. As Igarashi awakens, Sachie narrates, “There is something I don’t know about Igarashi-san.” Igarashi thinks, “What is it I wished for?” It’s New Years and everyone is going to Hatsumode. Igarashi and Azuma are at temple together. Azuma wishes that Sachie will acknowledge him in the coming year and then asks Igarashi what he wishes for. Igarashi, ever the smart-ass, says he wishes for Azuma’s happiness because he (Igarashi) can’t be happy without that happening. Azuma is touched until Igarashi actually says his prayer, “I wish for Azuma to be happy alone.” This illicits shouts of “Bastard” and such from Azuma. Azuma then tells Igarashi that his first dream of the year was about Sachie and that he believes this is a good omen for “love-love” between him and Sachie. Igarashi is dilligently praying and doesn’t seem to be paying too much attention to Azuma’s babbling. Finally Igarashi finishes and says, “Whatever …” to Azuma. “The only first dream of the year I care about is hers,” Igarashi continues, referring to Sachie, who has just joined them. Azuma and Sachie are shocked. “So what nice dream did you have?” he sweetly asks Sachie who is trying to dodge the question by looking like she’s busy praying. “Uh, well …” she begins. “I dreamt of the boy who was my first love.” “First love?” asks Azuma, who knows nothing of the story. The yakuza fill him in that Sachie’s first love is a boy she met at a World Exposition 10-years ago. She and this boy promised to send each other New Years cards (so they all know, which must be entertaining to them all to watch Sachie twist in the breeze). Igarashi, clearly pleased, inches in closer to Sachie and asks what happened in the dream. Sachie is quite nervous and embarassed about the dream, so she says that she doesn’t remember and then takes off running. She can’t tell Igarashi that in the dream the little boy said, “since then I’ve always liked you,” and then turned into Igarashi as he is now. Shocked at recalling the dream, she wonders why Igarashi was in it. She relieves her anxiety by blaming the dream on the necklace Igarashi gave her. She pauses on the note left with the necklace — “Here is the necklace you wished for.” But she didn’t wish for anything.

It’s getting cold and Igarashi comes to get Sachie to take her to an area where there’s a fire so they can keep warm. Sachie is still lost in the thought about the necklace, and then decides that she’ll just accept it because the more she thinks about it, the more confused she gets. So off she storms to get Igarashi some sweet sake, which causes her for feel greatly embarrassed. Next they are writing wishes for the New Year and Sachie asks Igarashi what he wrote. “Me? If I? …” says Igarashi as he passes out in Sachie’s arms. He’s got a very high fever and apparently, he shouldn’t have had any sake. Igarashi is feels really bad and in his mind calls out for help and then he sees Sachie’s worried face. It’s been a while since he had a cold. Igarashi thinks, “Don’t worry, I’ll be okay. I’ll get well soon, so don’t make that face. Smile.”

Back to dreams of Igarashi’s childhood. His eyes are blank even though he’s smiling. He tells his mother that he will be okay alone and his mother praises him for being a good boy. “I’m okay,” he says in his sleep. Sachie is by his side as he sleeps. She feels bad because she didn’t realize should not have given Igarashi sake. She wonders why Igarashi is saying that he’s okay in his sleep . She gets up and decides to got fix him some traditional sick-person dishes. Then Igarashi starts coughing and Sachie quickly returns to his side and holds his hand. Igarashi awakens briefly. He’s in a daze and says, “Thank goodness, Mom.” “Did he dream of his mother?” Sachie wonders. “Was the dream painful?” Then she thinks about an earlier conversation they had on the porch and wonders what he was deprived of as a child. “What happened? It must have been tough leaving home at 5-years old,” she thinks. Then she looks at the necklace and wonders what she could do to bring Igarashi some comfort. Holding the necklace, she folds her hands and prays for power.

Back to Igarashi dream … “What is it I wished for?” Igarashi’s Mom is packing up to leave for the day. Igarashi cheerfully asks when she will be back, to which she replies that she doesn’t know and that he should go to sleep instead of waiting for her. Igarashi’s eyes go blank. Another day, little Igarashi is excited again because it will be parent’s day at his daycare soon. His Mom says that she can’t go and Igarashi replies that he will okay alone. Even though he is smiling, he looks likes he could be crying at the same time (T_T). Another day, little Igarashi is running home with a bag full of groceries in his arms. He’s excited because it’s his Mom’s birthday and they are going make dinner and have cake. When he gets home, though, nobody is there (it looks like she gave him money for food and then disappeared while he was shopping. T_T). Then we move forward a little to Igarashi’s awful relatives who don’t want to take him in. “I promised …” Moving forward a little, … “Soon I we have say goodbye” … a little girl is waving back at him. “C’ya” she says. “Don’t forget our promise. From now on everyone will be together always” Igarashi recalls, “The promise was for me to be in that person’s future. Through this I forgive my existence.” Igarashi then awakens to find Sachie asleep as his bedside. She is holding the necklace he gave her.

Soon Sachie awakens and excitedly asks Igarashi if he okay and begins to feed him some of the sick-people’s food that Azuma brought earlier. She is very happy that Igarashi is okay. After feeding him, she remarks that the necklace is wonderful and it’s just what she wanted. She continues by saying that she’s also happy that Igarashi got well quickly just as she wished for. They do some back and forth about what her wish really is and it ends with her declaring that her wish was fullfilled by her own power because year after year everyone will be together for days like Christmas and New Years. Meanwhile, Azuma is putting away laundry. He puts some clothes in Igarashi’s clothes and finds an old New Years card that Sachie sent to Igarashi (yes, Azuma, Igarashi is Sachie first love and she doesn’t know it). Back to Igarashi and Sachie. “So, the the effects of this necklace can’t be avoid, let me put it on you,” Igarashi says as puts the necklace on Sachie. Sachie looks a little surprised. The narration closes, “Together with you in the future”